Have a Little Faith
by Mark-and-Elizabeth-fan-always
Summary: A diagnosis changes the Camdens' lives forever. Part one of the save me series. All done now. Only one chapter, but there will be more parts.


PART ONE OF THE "SAVE ME" SERIES  
  
Annie Camden sat in the hospital surgery waiting room. She was waiting for the nurse to take her back into the operating room. She was scheduled for a biopsy a week after she had mysteriously broken her leg. Blood tests done that day had revealed that her white blood cell count was low, which had alarmed doctors and caused them to put her on the urgent list. The doctors had told her it was a possibility that she could have osteoporosis, an infection, or cancer, or simply a hairline fracture. They felt that it probably wasn't just a fracture though, because of the alarmingly low cell count. Annie looked over at her husband, Eric who was sitting beside her.  
  
"I'm so scared, Eric."  
  
"I know. So am I. It'll be okay, honey." Eric said trying to convince both him and his wife.  
  
"I have a feeling, a gut feeling, that this won't be good." Annie said as the nurse came out.  
  
Annie was wheeled back in a wheelchair, through the big, blue double doors with the red button, and went into operating room number three. She was helped onto the operating table by another nurse, Bettey and lay down. Her casted leg was propped up and a pillow put under her head. As the anesthetist inserted an I.V., she winced.  
  
"Count down from 10 while I insert the white fluid into your veins."  
  
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three." at three she faded off into the false sleep of the common anesthetic.  
  
Eric Camden waited in the surgery waiting room. It had been fourty five minutes and no news. His son Matt was beside him. He was reading a book when Eric interrupted him.  
  
"Matt, son, do you think Mom will be okay? Not as her son but as a doctor."  
  
"Well, by what Dr. Janiz's reports said, it's probably osteoporosis or bone cancer."  
  
"No, but what do YOU think?"  
  
"Well, I think Mom."  
  
"Will be fine for now." Dr. Clara Janiz said coming out into the waiting room. She stood next to her patient's husband and son. "We did the biopsy and all went well. We want to keep her in tonight because it's now seven at night, but she should be released tomorrow. The results should be back in a few days. We will call you then."  
  
"Thanks. Can we go see her?" Eric asked.  
  
"One at a time, you can."  
  
Three days later, Annie Camden was sitting on her front porch, her leg propped up, waiting for her husband to come home, when the phone rang. The babysitter, who babysat her twins and was the ex girlfriend of her seventeen year old son Simon, who was in college, Cecilia brought the phone out to her.  
  
"Annie, it's someone named Dr. Janiz."  
  
"Thanks. Take the twins upstairs for their naps, okay?" Cecilia nodded.  
  
"Hello? Yes, I'll come in. Tonight? Sure. Bye." Annie said turning the phone off as Eric pulled up in his car.  
  
"Honey, are you okay?" Eric asked seeing the worried look on her face.  
  
"I don't know, Dr. Janiz just called. She and a Dr. Calderman want to meet with me now. Tonight."  
  
Dr. Calderman, he knew that name. Probably a perishonar at his church. Eric helped Annie into the car with care and drove off to the hospital after he had told Cecilia that they would be back later.  
  
"Hi, Annie, this is Dr. Faye Calderman. Annie, your biopsy results came back positive."  
  
"Positive for what?" Annie asked.  
  
"Bone cancer, Annie. Dr. Calderman is an oncologist. I'm sorry."  
  
Annie sat stunned at this diagnosis. She had known about the worst, but never imagined it would happen to her in a million years. She looked over at Eric, a single tear on her solemn face. Eric wrapped his arms around her, maybe in an attempt to comfort her or maybe in an attempt to shield her from this terrible diagnosis. The two doctors could see that the couple needed some time alone so they snuck out and decided to come back in a few minutes.  
  
After questions and more tears, Eric and Annie were told to go home and come back in the morning.  
  
That night, Annie sat her family down and prepared them for the news they were about to receive. Matt, Mary and Simon were on the speaker phone conference calling.  
  
"Hi Matt, Mary and Simon. Kids, we have to tell you something important to tell you."  
  
"What is it Mom? Are you okay?"  
  
"No, she's not okay."  
  
"I have. I have. I have.." Annie started to say, but couldn't finish.  
  
"Kids, your mother has bone cancer."  
  
After crying and kissing and hugging, they all went to bed to contemplate what they had been told.  
  
Three weeks later, Annie started chemo. Eric went with her that first time. The woman in the bed next to her, was named Jeri Harlingham. Eric went out to call the kids when Annie noticed her.  
  
"Hi."  
  
"Hi. I'm Jeri."  
  
"I'm Annie. Why are you here?"  
  
"I have breast cancer. Why are you here?"  
  
"I have bone cancer in my leg. Is anyone here with you, Jeri?"  
  
"No. My boyfriend broke up with me last month, before the diagnosis. My daughter, she's twenty five, Carly usually comes with me, but she has the flu and she can't come when she has the flu. Hospital rules. Who was that with you?"  
  
"My husband Eric, he just went to go call my kids and let me know he was here."  
  
"That's nice that you and your family are good at communication. My family isn't. When you are in a situation like mine but don't talk, it's so much harder."  
  
Annie realized how much she should be grateful to have her family in this hard time of her life. Eric came back in and kissed his wife, realizing that he too was grateful for his family.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own the 7th heaven characters, only the docs and nurses and I am pretty sure the details about the medical stuff is right, but don't quote me on it!!!!! 


End file.
